Good Morning, Ex-or-cists
by Captain Jap
Summary: Seraphy Royce has discovered a weapon with unlimited potential. Things go slightly wrong when he uses it as his recertification exam. Yullen and Lavilee(?) also available on ao3
1. Chapter 1

**Hello~**

 **Welcome to the first chapter of the D. Gray-Metal rewrite - Good Morning Exorcists (GME)! This is also on AO3, under the same title and theFrenchMistake16 (also me, by the way, don't freak). I have a better idea of where I want this to go and a decent end game, so there's some stuff that's changed around in order to get it.**

 **Anywho, enjoy the first chapter!**

 **-Captain Jap**

* * *

The man sat in a rickety chair, eyes focused only on his treasure. Dark circles were prominent on his pale skin and his tongue flicked across his chapped lips every few seconds. Howls and screeches came from the cages in the room he sat in. Disfigured animals and dying monsters rattled the bars in an effort to get to the man and to each other.

The noises fell on deaf ears and blinded eyes.

There was only one thing that could hold his attention at this moment in time.

* * *

Laboratory 4 wasn't as talked about as the others. It was nestled in a warehouse district in Central City. No one really knew what happened in there, or that it even existed. Supposedly, it was going to be shut down with Laboratory 5, but it never happened. An alchemist – state alchemist – managed to convince his higher ups that keeping the lab open would be worthwhile… that he was working on some amazing project that would guarantee the superiority of the Amestrian military… and let him keep the title of the Tuning Alchemist. Seraphy Royce was extremely excited, indeed. Everyone in Central Command thought that he was going to fail his recertification because of some stupid memory loss. They thought that he changed from his kind, _weak_ demeanor to something much darker. _Be thou for the people_. Well, the people would thank him later when they dominated the surrounding nations. First, Amestris would start by taking out Creta _(weak)_ and Aerugo _(valuable)_. Once Aerugo was controlled, the military could control the seas.

Then, finally, Drachma would get what was coming to them. No longer would there be news of those bastard Drachmans pushing against the northern border. _Of course,_ thought Royce, _the soldiers will have to die. Older men will be put into enslavement. Children will be added to the Amestrian superpower. Women can be auctioned off to the highest bidder._ A cackle escaped from the alchemist's body.

Of course, the next step was total domination.

To make the world _cower_ at the sight of the Amestrian military.

* * *

"It's right through here, sirs." Major Royce said, opening the door and stepping aside for his guests. Mustang took another glance around at those who had joined him (though for different reasons, in all likelihood). Hakuro and Archer were the more prominent figures. The former looked excited at the possibility of an all-powerful weapon falling into the hands of Amestris, while the latter looked bored. However, Mustang wasn't a colonel just for his battle prowess. He could see the calculating look in those dangerous eyes, could tell that Archer was here for the weapon as well.

As power-hungry as Mustang is, the reason that he really was here was because of a rumor of Royce balancing on the edge of insanity. And with his skill in bioalchemy, the higher-ups really didn't want the alchemist running around unchecked (should the recertification attempt fail). It had worked out beautifully, as Hawkeye had received a letter from the man in question that was to be delivered to Mustang as soon as possible (which just so happened to be when he was leaving the meeting with Bradley).

Royce continued to lead them through the dimly lit hallway to a metal door, before grinning at his guests and fishing a small key from one of the pockets of his uniform, "Wouldn't want anybody stealing my ideas, now would I?" As he opened the door, a glow highlighted the entry to the room. "What is it, Royce?" Hakuro asked, a greedy glint already entering his eyes. Royce chose not to answer, instead stepping out of the way to allow the officers access to the room.

It wasn't the dozens of cages of chimeras that caught Mustang's attention, nor was it the various empty bottles and spilled medicine all over the floor. Even the noise from the caged beasts had dulled, his ears instead filled with a static sound (if the colonel had really been paying attention, he could've made out a faint metallic ring in the background).

A large green crystal _floated_ in the middle of the room. Mustang moved forward, reaching out a gloved hand to touch the anomaly. Just before he touched it, a wave of energy erupted from it. Dust and pieces of cement rose from the ground as it moved throughout the room, causing the military men to fall over, machinery to spark, and the chimeras to riot against their prisons. "This is the power I spoke of! With this, we can achieve world domination," cried Royce, "The future is bright, my fellow officers, and its glow is green!" The alchemist began cackling, running his hands through his stringy auburn hair. The look in the officers' eyes was a mix of greed, excitement, and acceptance as they picked themselves up off of the ground. Analytical minds were already running through the possibilities of what the Amestrian military could achieve with such power. The exception was Mustang, who was still staring at where the crystal was floating. Or… had been floating. It had lost its elevation, the tip of it now resting in the ground. In addition, it looked as if it was… shrinking?

The crystal hadn't actually shrunk in size, now that Mustang looked closely at it. It was slowly elongating into what the colonel faintly recognized as an Xingese blade. Yet it continued to defy the laws of physics and it took a moment for Mustang to actually see _why._ A teen was stooped in a crouch, the blade now moved across his front. Distrustful dark eyes surveyed the now-eerily quiet room. None of the officers moved, years of military experience drilled into them – as long as they were not the aggressor, they could not be punished for any harm that befell the boy (however, Mustang could see the shining glint of at least one gun in a hand). Even the chimeras seemed to sense that something was going on and had quieted down. Until Hakuro took half a step forward and said, "Who are you, boy? And where did you come from?"

The teen's eyes narrowed and he slowly rose from his crouch. Mustang could now see the attire the teen wore – though not the strangest he'd seen. Actually, it was quite… tame. A long red and black coat sat over black pants and a pair of plain black boots. Two chains reached from the right side of the coat to the left, where an emblem sat over his heart. Several parts of the outfit looked like they were in ragged shape, torn and, in some places, darkened by what Mustang could only assume was blood, but it was definitely a uniform. _Military, then?_

The stranger deigned not to answer, instead letting out a noise that sounded suspiciously like _"Che."_ He leaned forward slightly and gripped his blade tighter. It was those details that probably saved Mustang's life. At the same time the teen moved, he snapped and let loose a streak of flame. The resulting sound did nothing to mask the distinct _pop_ of a pistol going off.

* * *

Yuu Kanda was not happy. Well, he was never actually happy (at least not that he would admit). Right now, he was in a rare state of confusion. There were a group of men in matching uniforms (military, most likely) staring at him like Beansprout stared at his dinner. Speaking of which, where was Beansprout? It doesn't matter. The idiot was going to pop up eventually (like he always does).

His eyes flitted back and forth, finally able to focus his dazed head on the one who was speaking. One blink, two blinks, and the exorcist rose from his crouch. Kanda tightened his grip on Mugen and began to move forward. A _snap_ preluded an intense explosion right where he was standing. It was only years of training that helped him move out of the way to lessen the damage, but his leg was still engulfed in heat and pain. At the same time, the sound of a gun being fired accompanied sharp pain in his arm. And that was when his mind flashed into overdrive. He had to _get away_. _Danger._ _No known backup. Flee and recover._ Yet, his pride wouldn't simply allow him to run away.

So after the military bastards he went.

The first one who went down was the sandy-haired older man – the one who had shot him. It was a simple swipe of Mugen to disarm him and then a kick to the side to push him out of the way (Kanda gritted his teeth as pressure was put on his burned leg. Heal faster, damn it!). Then, to the pale-faced snobby brat who was attempting to sneak up behind him (yeah, right. Enhanced reflexes, dumbass). That one only took a knock to the head with his fist. Finally, onto the _– shit!_ Kanda bent in half to avoid the trail of flame that was aimed at him. _Unknown factor. Unknown abilities. New level of akuma?_ He hissed in annoyance, trying to get his mind to focus as he finally – _finally_ could feel his curse kick in. Fight or flee?

The door being unguarded made the decision easy. Casting one last glare at the fire-controller, Kanda leapt from the room, up the short staircase, and found himself in a… warehouse? Okay, not what he was expecting when he woke up in some laboratory basement. He could hear his captors climbing the stairs. _Keep moving, stay alive, gather thoughts later_. A door sat just over there, but did it lead outside? No matter, he really didn't have time for this. Behind him, he could hear the fire-controller yelling "Hawkeye!" (What the hell is a hawkeye?) and felt the heat on his neck before the snap registered in his mind. Oh, no. He was _not_ getting caught by that trick a second time. The exorcist hit the ground in a roll, coming out of it in a full-blown sprint to the door (which had coincidentally been blasted open by the fire-controller). He had to suck a breath as another sharp pain hit his back, thankfully missing his spinal cord ( _that_ would have taken longer to heal than he had time for) and continued to run. The ground peppered with shots taken from different guns, the owners apparently hidden up in the rafters of the warehouse. Another caught the edge of his foot and he stumbled through the very-hard-to-ignore pain. This was not working out _at all_.

* * *

In the end, it took a total of five shots to take down the teen.

One in his lower back.

One in his foot.

One in his shoulder.

One through his leg.

And the last grazed his neck.

 _Yet somehow_ , Mustang thought, astonished, _he's still alive._

* * *

Kanda's eyes blinked open, dazedly taking in his surroundings. _This is happening far too often_ , he mused. Mugen was nowhere in sight. His hands were latched to the wall and his feet were bound in chains and weights. Unsurprisingly, he felt no pain, only stiffness. Cracking his neck only relieved a little of that problem, before his thoughts were interrupted by someone outside the cell.

"Awake, finally? Good, I have more than a few questions for you." Ah, it was the fire-controller from before. Kanda raised an eyebrow, then turned his head away. _Ask away,_ he thought, _I will not answer._

"The first being how did you survive five gunshot wounds? Your body spit out the bullets before we even got you here and sealed itself over." Silence was the only answer the man received. "Quiet one, then? How about you tell me about your friends that are here. Usagi, was it? And Lenalee? Oh, and Moyashi? You uttered that name quite a few times while you were out." Kanda's eyes flashed open and his head turned back around to look the fire-controller in his eyes.

He only spoke three words, but they were uttered in such a dangerous tone that the exorcist could see the fire-controller visibly stiffen. "Where are they?"

* * *

"Brother! Colonel Mustang is on the phone!"

"What does Colonel Bastard want now?"

* * *

 **So it's kind of different. I think I'll post the next chapter in a couple of days - or if I get... ten reviews?**

 **Sure.**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading, favoriting, or reviewing. It means a lot for your support!**

 **Signing off,**

 **-Captain Jap**


	2. Chapter 2

Kanda spat a mixture of spit and blood at the military officer standing in front of him, hatred burning in his cobalt eyes. The officer growled, narrowed his gaze, and delivered another brass-knuckled hit that had the exorcist's head reeling backwards. The Japanese's face was already harshly battered. One eye was swollen to such a point where he could hardly see out of it and blood steadily leaked out of his nose, trickling down into his mouth. Bruises colored his skin on his head and torso, which was bare for the world to see. Small holes could be seen on his wrists, which were tied down to the metal arms of the chair he was seated on. Something about doing a couple of blood tests, see if his healing ability could be recreated for some kind of soldier.

 _Good luck,_ he thought bitterly. Kanda blinked a few times, focusing his gaze on the man behind the punishment officer. Same blue uniform, maybe a few different medals. Oh, that was the one that had taken his blood. Bastard. Beside him was a man who definitely seemed like the leader of the pack. Tall, proud, wearing the most medals on his chest and the most stars on his shoulder (five, to be exact). The exorcist met the inquisitive stare of the leader with a burning glare that made Finders flee on sight. However, the man didn't even blink, merely offering him a smirk that disappeared as soon one of his goons turned to speak. "I believe that that is enough for today. We will time him to see how fast he heals and compare it to his previous times. Private Samuel, please escort this… man back to his cell. See to it that he is rechained."

It only took a few minutes for Kanda to be led (read: dragged) back to his cell. As ordered, Private Samuel bound his hands to the wall and wrapped his legs in weights and chains. The military officer cast one last sneer at the chained exorcist and left the cell, throwing the barred door closed with a loud _bang_.

Sleep did not come easy for the Japanese teen, brain occupied with the health of his comrades.

* * *

"You want me to track down people that we have no idea what they look like, using a jacket and a couple of weird ass names?"

"That is correct, Fullmetal." Edward groaned, rubbing a hand down his face. Another wild goose chase – just not after Philosopher's Stone leads. Now the bastard is sending him after three random people. Golden eyes fell upon the red and black overcoat taking up space on the desk and a sigh escaped him. "Alright, fine. I'll do it and get it over with, but you better give me an' Al some off time." The metal suit of armor beside him raised a hand, offering an "Oh, I don't mind!" before quieting to hear his brother's commanding officer speak once more.

"I'll see what I can do. Now, who are you looking for?"

"Three people wearing that stupid embellished coat. Go by Usagi, Lenalee, and Moyashi. Use force only if necessary. Blah blah blah, I got it. See you later, Colonel Bastard." Rising from the couch, the Fullmetal Alchemist left the office with his brother by his side. It didn't take long before they were back in the middle of Central.

"Alright Al, so we're for sure looking for at least one girl. I don't know what kind of names Usagi and Moyashi are, but Lenalee is definitely a girl's name," Edward said, eyes scanning the crowd for anything out of the ordinary. "I guess the best way to find them would be to ask around." And so the search began.

In typical fashion, there were no results. By the time noon rolled around, Edward was tired of several things. Of people calling him short ("I'm not short, damn it! You're freakishly tall!) and people saying that Al was the Fullmetal Alchemist. The latter would usually lead to a comment like the former and Alphonse holding him by his hood. And so, it was time for a lunch break.

Of course, even that couldn't be peaceful.

"Edward! Oh, Edward! Come over here!" Ling waved his hands around wildly from where he was seated at a table. Stacks of food rose around him, all but hiding Ran Fan and what looked to be one empty space. Did someone order more backup for Prince Protection Detail? The young alchemist stomped over to where the idiot awaited. Alphonse followed quickly behind, muttering "Be nice brother, he hasn't done anything this time," before they were in hearing range. "Oh! My favorite pair of brothers! It's so wonderful to see you! Come on and eat, there's plenty! Ran Fan is actually joining me at the table this time, isn't it amazing?"

"Actually, Ling, we're looking for someone," Alphonse said, speaking in a much more eloquent fashion than Edward would have (had he not been stuffing his face). "You might have seen them. They should be wearing a jacket that looks like this," he held up a drawing of the overcoat. Ling stared at it for a minute and something like curiosity flashed briefly through his eyes. "And if I had," the Xingese began, "What would I receive in return for my information?" Edward glanced up, mumbling something that sounded like "How about a swift kick up the ass?" but was interrupted by a quiet voice before he could voice his thoughts louder.

"Thank you so much Ran Fan! Here's your bag back, I'll be sure to return your shirt as soon as I can!" The speaker was a teenage girl with shoulder length black hair (it almost seemed like it had a green tint to it). She had on a black Xingese-style top and a very, _very_ short black skirt, accompanied by flat slipper-like shoes and red anklets. It was almost dead silent at the table, all eyes on the newcomer. A smirk had spread across Ling's face and Ran Fan's gaze had narrowed. Edward looked back and forth between the girl and the Xingese royalty, intellectual mind piecing it together. Alphonse was still holding out the drawing and the girl took a glance at it. She stiffened almost immediately, before relaxing and planting a large, friendly smile on her face. "Hi, there!"

"And that's our cue to leave," Ling jumped up, grasping the wrists of his two companions and sprinting off. Edward and Alphonse jumped up after them, almost stopped by the waiter who had been serving them. Thankfully, that was resolved quickly by yelling "Charge it to Roy Mustang!" and dashing off. Sure, the Xingese trio was fast, but Edward's and Alphonse's bodies kind of allowed them to move faster than a lot of people. Enough so that they had the runaways back in their sights. Blue lightning snaked after them, the dirt and gravel rising and carrying the alchemist brothers even faster. Ling and Ran Fan leapt off the ground, climbing onto the closest rooftops they could. The girl (who must be Lenalee) attempted to go after them but was brought back down to Earth by the weight of a teen with two automail limbs jumping on her.

At least, she was brought down for a minute. Edward heard a whisper of "Dark Boots!" and then felt the wind soar around his ears. He looked around and immediately wished he hadn't. The ground (and his brother) were getting farther and farther away by the second, which only made the alchemist lock his arms tighter around Lenalee's legs. It earned him a hiss of pain and the feeling of fists beating on his flesh arm. "Let go of me!"

"Put me down on the ground and come with us!"

"I'll put you down, alright!" She began spinning, the air now whipping around them in a vortex. It eventually became too much for Edward to be able to hang on to her and he was forced to let go. His body immediately began gaining momentum, but she wasn't getting away that easily. The cry of "Brother!" had him bracing his body for impact, not with the ground, but with the pillar of stone Alphonse was now rising up on. His automail leg took most of the impact, leaving a deep dent in the rock. Edward clapped his hands and slammed them down, watching the lightening travel down the length of the pillar and onto the adjacent buildings. More pillars sprung from them, sharpening into spikes and hands that moved as best they could to try and catch Lenalee. Gunshots from below told the Fullmetal Alchemist that the military had noticed and were now taking efforts to – at the very least – incapacitate her. Unfortunately, it didn't really make a difference. The girl was out of range in a few seconds and out of sight in a mere minute.

* * *

"He is a very interesting person, Father. I believe that his… traits would be useful to our cause."

"Keep an eye on him, then."

* * *

Somewhere, a man sat surrounded by a stack of books and newspapers, eye moving furiously across pages.

* * *

Somewhere, dazed silver eyes met confused red.

* * *

Somewhere, chains rattled in the silence of night, allowing the battered man to know he was still alive.

* * *

Somewhere, a girl nursed a broken leg and shivered, thoughts elsewhere.

* * *

EXTRA SHORT OMAKE DEALIO KINDA –

Edward gestured wildly. "And then, I was up in the air! Mustang, I was like, hundreds of feet in the air! How is that possible! Did she have something attached to her? What would allow her to fly? I need to know!"

Mustang groaned, took a shot of whiskey, and put his head in his hands. Sure, it was interesting and all, but did Fullmetal really need to break into his house at _two in the morning_?

* * *

Well, here's this. It was done a very, very long time ago but I kind of maybe forgot to post it on ... so.. .yeah. I'm finishing up Chapter 3, so theoretically speaking it should be up fairly quick.

Stay classy,

Captain Jap


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